A Conversation Between Sort of Friends
by ashleyt
Summary: The second piece in my Conversations Between Series. Michael/Liz.


**Title: **A Conversation Between Sort of Friends

**Author: **Ashleyt

**Summary: **Another conversation takes place. This time between the sort of friends (in my opinion, anyhoo) Michael and Liz. Takes place sometime during Skin and Bones.

**Rating: **Teen? Well there's like one swear word so that should be enough to keep this at a teen rating.

**Disclaimer: **Don't own 'em. Wish I did, a lot of things would change. Starting with the new DVD covers, I wasn't aware that Katherine Heigl (love her!) was the star of the show.

**Note:**Well I knew I wanted to do another Conversation Between fic but wasn't sure of who to do. I have never attempted something so simple yet so different from anything I've ever written before because well these are two characters that had limited time together. I hope you enjoy!

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Michael Guerin was tired and sweaty, and he was pretty sure that his clothes would be permanently marked with the scent of burning food.

_Just another day of joyful employment at the __Crashdown_

It wasn't as if he were ungrateful or anything. Not at all, he was very appreciative of the fact that Mr. Parker allowed him to work around his school schedule. And it worked out that most of their "alien" meetings took place in the back room. So all in all he had no complaints.

Well except for...Maria.

Breaking up with her had been the hardest thing he'd ever done. Add that it was a sharp, continuously piercing pain made it worse. He woke up to the memory of her face. As he took his shower, he flashed back to the thoughts of intense kisses and touches in the eraser room, the back room of the Crashdown, his apartment, her bedroom, hell practically everywhere in town. That certainly added extra minutes to his daily routine. Than on top of that there were random moments throughout the day he'd either catch a glimpse of her in the hallways or at the opposite end of the classroom.

But the absolute worse was the evenings he went to work and found her humming as she burrowed through her locker. Lately even the food she'd ask for from the menu affected him. He'd never look at a plate of Saturn Rings again!

Lucky for him tonight she was nowhere to be seen. Instead he was stuck closing with Liz Parker. Which in all honesty wasn't his idea of a fun time but at least she was guaranteed to shut up and close shop quickly. He glanced at her as she wiped a cloth over the tables and noticed her looking at him. She quickly looked away and focused on cleaning.

Shrugging he picked up a broom and started sweeping the floor and tried very hard to keep the picture of a particular blonde spit-fire out his mind.

And failing miserably.

Liz shot another glance at Michael, wondering why he was frowning as he attacked the floor with her father's broom. It wasn't the first time tonight she caught him frowning, even when she asked for a slice of Men In Black he was frowning. Sighing from her own metal anguish, she moved to the next table wishing she could wipe away all of her problems. Starting with the events that occurred before summer. _Wipe._ Destiny. _Wipe._ Tess. _Wipe._ The White Room.

_WIPE_ The moment she realized that she couldn't be with Max and the look on his face before she walked away.

"Liz?"

She snapped out of her moment and noticed that Michael was standing behind her staring in bewilderment at the table she'd been wiping down. Looking down she noticed that she'd been scrubbing the same spot so hard, she'd started taking of some of the paint.

Dropping the cloth, she plopped down into the booth. Racking a hand through her brown locks in frustration, Liz felt the urge to scream. Seeing Max after the summer away had been hard and now that she saw him daily it was becoming harder and harder to remember why she'd walked away.

Michael coughed awkwardly from where he still stood.

"What?" She asked not in the mood to be patronized by a guy she wasn't sure she even liked. That being her feelings before he'd broken her best friend's heart.

"Well, there's a Metallica concert on cable tonight. So...I was hoping to get out of here and meet up with Kyle"

"Why don't you just go? Leave me all alone to clean up, this mess. All alone..." She trailed off as she thought about a future without Max. She'd be all alone, there was never going to be another person out there who could make her feel the way that Max did.

"Right" Michael muttered and he sat down across from her.

She looked up at him and saw that he was sitting there uncomfortably biting at his nails.

"Michael it's okay, I am fine" She didn't want to ruin anyone's fun with her sour mood, just because she couldn't be with the one she loved.

Michael was unsure of the reason he'd sat down in the booth in some attempt to comfort the brunette. He wasn't the biggest Liz supporter and tolerated her for the most part due to her importance to Maria. "Naw, it's okay. Maria wouldn't like it if you were upset"

Liz quickly narrowed her eyes and said "I wasn't aware that you cared for Maria or the things that she would like. Not anymore"

_Ouch_

He felt anger at Liz for calling him on his behaviour and at himself because she was right. He jumped out the booth and pulled off his apron. "Fine. Whatever. I'm gone"

He went into the back room and grabbed his helmet from his locker. He re-entered the eating area and stormed towards the front doors. Liz jumped in front of him, holding her hands out in surrender. "I'm sorry, Michael. I didn't mean to snap at you. I'm just in a lousy mood right now..."

Michael looked down at Liz, her face fading away to the image of Maria. _What the fuck?_ He shook his head violently, wishing for the hundredth time that Maria was actually here speaking to him, touching him instead.

"...Max. I didn't mean to hurt him but after the hologram spoke about your destiny, I knew we couldn't be together" Liz continued rambling "This thing is so much bigger than me or him or our relationship. A whole planet is relying on you guys"

"Destiny?" Being the only word Michael caught during Liz's melt down. "No one's following destiny, least of all Max and Tess. Not that she doesn't want it" He finished with a smirk.

Warmth spread through Liz at the knowledge that Max wasn't building a relationship with his wife from another life. Maria had mentioned it many times over the summer but hearing the words from Michael was an added relief.

"Look if you're so lousy without Max than why don't you just go back to him. He'll take you back no problem and soon enough you'll be back to staring at each other across the room" He finished with a disgusted tone in his voice.

"It's not that simple"

"Yes it is. When you love someone and it makes you unhappy to be without them, than be with them"

Liz shook her head and sat down on a stool, "If it's really that simple than why haven't you gone back to Maria?" She inquired.

At a loss for words, Michael stood facing away from Liz and stared at the Crashdown sign on the front door. He wondered the same thing every day but was unable to make the first move. He loved her, yes, but did he deserve her? No. His gaze switched to his hands and all he could see was blood. Not just Pierce's blood but also the blood from everyone around him who would die if, no when, he failed to protect them. Balling his hands in fists, he replied "That is different"

Liz tugged on his arm until he faced her "No it isn't. It's very simple" And then in aquiet tone she said "She misses you"

Pulling his arm out of her grasp, he turned dark brown eyes on Liz. "I know. Max misses you too"

Liz bit her lip and looked away. "I know"

A moment passed as the tension in the room disappeared and longing filled the void.

Michael clunked his helmet on the counter causing Liz to jump up in surprise. He picked up his forgotten broom and resumed sweeping as if he had never been interrupted.

Liz watched him and after a heart beat she pushed off her stool to continue wiping down tables.

"Look Liz, if I know anything about love it's that there's no I.Q. test required so once in a while we're allowed to be stupid and make mistakes. If the loves real than time won't change the feelings"

_I __hope_

They both thought as they continued cleaning, lost in their thoughts of failed romances and hard decisions. Both feeling better and worse from their conversation with sort of friends.

The End


End file.
